Childminder in Swindon

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY413666 Inspection date 06/04/2011 Inspector Catherine Sample

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Type of setting Childminder to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way.

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T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of the registered early years provision. ‘Early years provision’ refers to provision regulated by Ofsted for children from birth to 31 August following their fifth birthday (the early years age group). The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and welfare, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Introduction

The provider must provide a copy of this report to all parents with children at the setting where reasonably practicable. The provider must provide a copy of the report to any other person who asks for one, but may charge a fee for this service (The Childcare (Inspection) Regulations 2008 regulations 9 and 10).

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Introduction

The setting also makes provision for children older than the early years age group which is registered on the voluntary and/or compulsory part(s) of the Childcare Register. This report does not include an evaluation of that provision, but a comment about compliance with the requirements of the Childcare Register is included in Annex B.

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Introduction

Please see our website for more information about each childcare provider. We publish inspection reports, conditions of registration and details of complaints we receive where we or the provider take action to meet the requirements of registration. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Description of the childminding

The childminder was registered in 2010. She lives with her husband and two children in married quarters in Bulford, Wiltshire. All of the home may be used for childminding. There is a small rear garden available for outside play. The family have two pet cats.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register to care for four children under the age of eight, of whom two may be in the early years age group. She is registered to provide overnight care for one child. There are three children on roll, of whom two are in the early years age group.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is outstanding.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children thoroughly enjoy attending this welcoming and stimulating setting. The childminder has established excellent relationships with parents and other providers which helps her to fully meet children's unique needs. She takes highly positive steps to value and include all children whatever their background or stage of development. She has robust systems in place to monitor and evaluate what she does and displays a strong commitment to further extending her own skills and to improving outcomes for children.

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further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider:

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further?

 develop further the range of activities and resources available to provide children with rich and diverse learning and development opportunities in the outdoor environment.

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the early years provision

The childminder has high expectations for all areas of her provision. She is eager to secure improvement in her knowledge base and in improving outcomes for children. The high quality of her self-evaluation and the feedback she seeks from parents allow her to accurately identify areas for further development and plan for the future. The learning environment is well-organised and stimulating with displays of children's work and colourful posters. A comfortable book corner with cushions and a bookcase encourages children to curl up with a book and a low level role-play area enables even younger children to access it easily. Children use This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the garden regularly for various activities although it is not fully utilised as a rich and diverse learning environment. The childminder has a comprehensive awareness of safeguarding issues. She has completed training which ensures that

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the early years provision

she can recognise the possible indicators of abuse and knows what to do if she has concerns about a child in her care. She shares safeguarding information with parents and has comprehensive policies and procedures to ensure that children are fully protected. She makes detailed risk assessments of her home and for outings, which ensures that children are always cared for in a safe environment, and is highly effective in helping children to keep themselves safe.

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the early years provision

The childminder is highly committed to working in partnership and plays a full role in establishing effective working relationships with other providers. She shares a communication book between herself, other settings and parents to ensure that they have a consistent approach to children's care and learning. She has highly positive and productive relationships with parents. Parents are very well informed about all aspects of the setting and of their own child's achievement, well-being and development. The childminder uses contact books and discussion to share information on a daily basis and also shares children's records of development. Parents have the opportunity to add their own comments to her summative assessments and she has developed forms for them to record their own observations of their children's progress. This ensures that they are fully engaged in their children's care and learning.

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the early years provision

The childminder places the promotion of equality of opportunity at the heart of her work. She cares for children from different cultural backgrounds and is highly effective in ensuring that they are all fully valued and integrated. She talks to parents to find out if children have any individual needs relating to their cultural background and plans imaginative activities to celebrate relevant festivals. She also helps all children to learn about wider society as they find out about celebrations, including Holi and Commonwealth Day, and use resources, such as a wide range of books about differences. She values the fact that the children she cares for come from service families by using books, such as 'My Daddy is a Soldier'. She has completed training in British sign language and uses a book of basic signing with children to help them develop their communication skills.

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and outcomes for children

Babies show a strong sense of security within the setting due to the affectionate interaction they enjoy with the childminder and the excellent organisation of their routines. They display how confident they feel as they wave to visiting adults and scramble eagerly into the play tent. Older children are developing an excellent understanding how to stay safe. They have made their own risk assessments of the childminder's house and made posters about road safety and stranger danger. As a result they are developing a strong awareness of risk and are starting to take responsibility for their own safety. They have excellent opportunities to learn about healthy lifestyles. There are posters displayed about healthy eating and the childminder has been highly successful in extending the range of nutritious foods This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 that children will eat. They have innovative opportunities to engage in physical

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and outcomes for children

activities as they take part in their own Commonwealth Games and devise exercise routines. Children have excellent relationships with one another and thoroughly enjoy playing together with resources, such as balls in the tent. They are learning to respect one another from a young age as the childminder shows them how to be gentle and cuddle other children and talks about sharing and taking turns.

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and outcomes for children

Children are making outstanding progress as they take part in an excellent balance of stimulating activities. The childminder makes high quality observations and uses the information gained to inform her planning for each child. Younger children show high levels of independence and curiosity. They move around with confidence as they go in and out of the tent and happily explore various toys and activities. Mats are used to enable them to take part in outdoor play confidently too. Younger children are developing their language skills as the childminder chats to them, echoes sounds back to them and uses signing and pictures to help them communicate. Older children have excellent opportunities to practice early writing skills as they record their risk assessments and use work sheets when they play schools. Children are learning about shapes as they use shape-sorter toys and they talk about number and quantity as they play. They have unusual opportunities to

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and outcomes for children

solve problems, such as finding objects that the childminder has buried in soil or sand and babies enjoy working out where the musical toy has been hidden. They use various electronic toys and enjoy pressing buttons to make a noise. They have a children's computer and use the digital camera which helps them learn about technology. They enjoy exploring texture as they play with treasure baskets and exploring the sound of musical instruments. They engage in a wide range of activities that help them to value diversity. They talk about their own backgrounds and those of others and find out about an extensive range of festivals and celebrations from other cultures. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

The key inspection judgements and what they mean

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

Grade 1 is Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Grade 2 is Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Grade 3 is Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Grade 4 is Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?

The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement

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Early Years Foundation Stage

The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement The effectiveness with which the setting deploys resources 1 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s engagement with parents and carers

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Stage

The quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage 1

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 1 The extent to which children feel safe 1 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 1 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 1

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Stage

procedures set out in the guidance available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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